


Who's Happily Ever After?

by oscarwildeshoe



Category: The Infernal Devices Series - Cassandra Clare, The Last Hours Series - Cassandra Clare, The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare, The Shadowhunter Chronicles - Cassandra Clare
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-05
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-19 01:21:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29866989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oscarwildeshoe/pseuds/oscarwildeshoe
Summary: Pick up where we left off after Chain of Iron and with James.
Relationships: Cordelia Carstairs & Lucie Herondale, Cordelia Carstairs/James Herondale, James Herondale & Lucie Herondale, Jesse Blackthorn/Lucie Herondale, Matthew Fairchild & James Herondale, Matthew Fairchild & Lucie Herondale
Kudos: 35





	Who's Happily Ever After?

**Author's Note:**

> All characters are Cassandra Clare's

James POV

James sped up to walk next to his father, his mind clouded with thoughts of Cordelia and Matthew headed to Paris. Cordelia, who he couldn’t think of without thinking of golden love, with adoration, with everything Grace had robbed him of. And Matthew, who needed his help for so long. Grace had robbed him of that too. Grace, who for some reason admitted everything. Grace who for some reason was acquainted well with Lucie.

Lucie. He had known there was something she was hiding all this time, but he never thought it would be quite so … well, important. He had always thought of her as his younger sister, and thereby removed from the complicated things in his life. In truth, he was jealous of her. Of her magnetism, and the way that she never seemed affected by the dark cloud that followed him around his entire life. 

Ever since he was a child, he was tracked and pegged by Belial, pulled in and out of the shadow world and it seemed it was a price he alone was forced to pay for his heritage. Lucie seemed unbothered and unplagued by her ancestry. She was easily fascinated by life’s small offerings and he thought of her as he had always known her.

Lucie with her head buried in a notebook, Lucie moving her quills furiously, Lucie with her exuberance, Lucie who always talked to Jessamine, Lucie who played with Alexander. Lucie, who was obsessed with playing the heroine, the detective. 

His father looked agitated and anxious beside him as he filled James in on what had alarmed him enough to track James at the train station. James half-listened as Will relayed the information he was given by Jessamine, his mind halfway on a train to Paris ...“blew up the ghost of Emmanuel Gast.” James snapped to attention.

He had long suspected that Lucie saw more than him, but piecing together the information from his father and the way she ordered Jesse back into his body… Lucie commanded the dead, and clearly she was aware of it. She was aware that she alone saw Jesse. That day in Emmanuel’s flat, she had summoned him and ordered him against his will. The day at the river, when she jumped in after Cordelia, James swore he saw ghosts. Now he was certain. His sister had saved Cordelia’s life that day by commanding the dead to carry her. 

His mind began to whirl, putting together the information like puzzle pieces and everything seemed to center around Jesse. Jesse, the Blackthorn boy who had given James his last breath. Jesse, the boy who had done it so that Lucie wouldn’t lose her brother. The boy Lucie had clung to and whispered to so affectionately, although it was the first time James had seen him. Jesse, the boy who’s body Lucie had run away with.   
Lucie and Jesse.   
Jesse isn’t really gone. Jesse Blackthorn, I order you to be yourself.   
Ave Jesse Blackthorn. 

Jesse, the boy who was Grace’s brother for 3 years before his death. Grace and Lucie. They seemed acquainted. Anna. He needed to speak to Anna. 

Anna Lightwood POV

Anna had dragged herself home, her chest aching with the ghosts of wracking sobs. She knew there was so much to do. Knew there were greater things to focus on. She knew she was only hurting herself, but she couldn’t let go of Ariadne. She couldn’t let Kamala Joshi leave, not again. She picked up her coat and opened the door.

She jumped back in a rare feat of surprise and shock at the sight of James lingering on her doorstep, about to knock. He lowered his hand sheepishly. “May I come in?”

Anna was irritated, but intrigued by her cousin’s sudden appearance and gestured inside her flat. James stepped in and locked the door behind him. Eyebrows raised, Anna sunk into the settee, while James settled on the rug across from her. 

He seemed conflicted for a moment and then spoke decisively, “Lucie.” Anna found herself surprised for the second time that night, for that was the last name he expected out of his mouth. She had expected him to come to her about Cordelia, or Matthew’s drinking, not Lucie.   
“What about her?”  
“What did she say was her business with Jesse Blackthorn?”

Anna fixed her blue gaze on James’ face. “I think that question is better suited for Lucie.”

James looked a bit peeved now as he bulldozed on. “Why was Lucie with Grace at the Hell Ruelle, Anna.” It sounded less like a question and more of a request now and Anna decided to respond curtly. It was a long day and she had places to be.

“Lucie was meeting with Malcom Fade to investigate the circumstances surrounding Jesse’s death. She wanted to know how he had died and discovered the Rune’s. I thought we covered this at your house.”

James winced slightly, as if the topic of his house had become a sore one within the last few hours, but recovered himself. “Did she say why she was helping Grace? Was that the full extent of their discussion of Jesse?” 

Anna blinked and looked back on their encounter and chose her words carefully. “Lucie and Grace met with him twice before Ariadne and I saw them.” Ariadne “Looking back at it, there were too many visits for them to be talking solely about the information we managed to weasel out. I assumed she enjoyed playing detective because it made her feel useful, but it may be bigger than that, looking at what you know now.” Anna wanted to help, but she had somewhere to be and she said as much and resumed her departure.

James POV

James tried not to cry out in frustration. It had been a long day and Anna hadn’t been helpful. He decided against heading back to Curzon Street and instead, took his carriage to the Institute. He slipped inside and the first thing he registered was how large and empty it was. Will and Tessa had left with Magnus a while back to try and track Lucie, and of course Lucie wasn’t there. It was melancholy he realized, to be alone here, the way Lucie had been for the last few weeks. 

No, not alone, with Jesse. He sprinted up to her room and threw open the door. The desk was littered with papers filled with ink. If anyone knew her intentions, it would be the Beautiful Cordelia. Lucie may have not talked to any of them, but if she was sitting on these many secrets, she would’ve told her notebooks. 

James hovered over the writing. It felt like a personal offense to his sister to snoop through her writings without her consent, but NO. This was for her own good. 

James’ eyes scanned the pages, until he arrived at one about Princess Lucinda and Lord Jethro. He scorned his own stupidity. How many times had Cordelia read aloud the pages that had described Jethro. With his deep green eyes, his white billowing shirt…. It really had been there the whole time. James couldn’t stop himself from chuckling at the idea of his sister writing down her own, very real romance. 

His amusement was stamped out as he read a page detailing Lord Jethro’s dead and Princess Lucinda’s promise to love him in life and death. She truly loved loves him. 

He turned the page with a healthy amount of trepidation. There on the page, Princess Lucinda promise lay, written in dark ink. I’ll bring you back. He thought about his sister’s lack of grief or fury at the sight of Jesse’s empty body. She planned it. He realized with a jolt. She planned all along to move his body. 

A wave of shame washed over him. Matthew’s drinking. Cordelia’s seemingly unrequited love. He could partially blame his disnotice on the bracelet. But that was not the extent.   
His sister had fallen in a tragic love. His sister had exorcised a Belial with a power no one even knew she had possessed. His sister had saved his life, and Cordelia’s life so many times. And now his sister had run away to perform necromancy. And he had noticed none of it. He hadn’t questioned Lucie’s growing tiredness, her dimming exuberance, her love, her slipping away every night. 

He was going to bring her back. Then, he would go to Paris. He would fix things with Cordelia and help Matthew and all would be right in the world again. His Happy Ever After. 

Right?


End file.
